Charlize Theron to Star in Remake of Park Chan-wook’s SYMPATHY FOR LADY VENGEANCE Adapted by William Monahan

With Spike Lee‘s remake of Oldboy well underway, Hollywood is turning its eye to remaking another Park Chan-wook film. Annapurna Pictures has sent out a press release announcing that it will remake Park’s excellent 2005 film Sympathy for Lady Vengeance with Charlize Theron set to star and produce. For those unfamiliar with the original, Lady Vengeance “is the story of a woman who for reasons of her own completes a prison term for a murder she did not commit, reemerging to punish the killer, and avenge the dead.” The film is the final chapter in Park’s “Vengeance Trilogy” following Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance and Oldboy. While Oldboy is my favorite of the three, Lady Vengeance is a close second. Theron is a strong choice for the lead role, and I’m curious to see what Oscar-winner William Monahan (The Departed) will do with the script. The press release says he’s “adapting” the original, but that could mean he’ll serve as both writer and director or as the writer only. He previously directed London Boulevard and will next direct Mojave.

Hit the jump for the press release along with the trailer for Park’s Sympathy for Lady Vengeance (a.k.a. Lady Vengeance).

(Watching this trailer also reminds me how much I love the film’s score)

LADY VENGEANCE is the story of a woman who for reasons of her own completes a prison term for a murder she did not commit, reemerging to punish the killer, and avenge the dead.

“This will be very American – and very unexpected,” says Monahan. “Park is a genius; it’s the Everest of adaptations and I’ve got blood in my teeth to do it.”

A dramatist, director and novelist, William Monahan recently completed the screenplay for THE GAMBLER for Martin Scorsese at Paramount, and Robert Rodriguez’s SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR. He will next direct MOJAVE, an original thriller. He won an Academy Award® for Best Adapted Screenplay for THE DEPARTED, directed by Martin Scorsese, which earned four Oscars®, including Best Picture. His production company, Henceforth Pictures, has a number of feature and television projects in development, including a screen adaptation of his first novel, Light House: A Trifle, and “The Throwaways”, a New Yorker piece by journalist Sarah Stillman.

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